one of the first obama administration officials to be questioned directly by congress in this debacle that has been the obama care website rollout. have a listen to how it went. >> despite our democrats opposition to part d ten years ago, we committed to making the best of the program. and because of all the changes that have occurred in part d prescription program, 90% of seniors right now the are satisfied. and why are they satisfied? well, are in my district, before that was vote, i made seniors know that i was going to vote no and opposed and i told them two reasons. the gap, the doughnut hole when you're paying for premiums you're not getting any benefits. that was horrendous and number two, no one was an outside source was not sitting down and being the third party to the negotiate the prices of

prescription drugs. so it lost. we lost the policy fight. and what did we do? we went back to our districts and we told our seniors although we voted no, we're -- we personally believe and we'll work with the bush administration to make it work. that's what we did. and how many of you stood up to do that? none. zero. zero. let's talk. let's not water the wine here. let's say it like it is. you refused to expand many of these governors medicaid. they refused to set up state marketplaces to leaving millions of dollars in outreach on the table in education funding. and what happens? well, to those i say this. and to you i say this who i deeply respect. here and off the floor of the committee and off the floor of the house, what are you going to do about the approximately 17

million children with pre-existing conditions who can no longer be denied health insurance coverage? you want to go back? you want to say you are no longer covered any longer? you going to tell the parents of those kids? which one of you is going to stand up and tell the parents of those children the game is over, sorry, that was just a phase. >> will the gentleman yield? >> yes, i will. >> i would just tell you that -- >> where are you? >> right here. you asked a question. i'm going to answer it. it's a false choice to say it's obama care or nothing. there are numerous proposals including the one that i'm a cosponsor of. >> i yield back. i take back the time, sir. >> the president's signature health care law, welcome to, everyone, this is "around the world" and a special welcome to our international viewers joining us all of this week. i'm michael holmes. >> i'm hala gorani. we'll have a lot more on the obama carrollout and some of the issues they've had with the

website, of course. but for now, let's, as i was saying, moving on there to president obama's signature health care law under fire at a congressional hearing right now. >> yeah, and today we actually heard an apology. this from the administrator whose agency oversaw the creation of the enrollment website, the centers for medicare and medicaid services. have a listen. >> consumers are eager to purchase this coverage. and to the millions of american who have attempted to use healthcare.gov to shop and enroll in health care coverage, i want to apologize to you the website has not worked as well as it should. we know how desperately you need affordable coverage. i want to assure you healthcare.gov can and will be fixed. we are working around the clock to deliver the experience that you deserve. we are seeing improvements each week. >> the medicare chief apologizing and acknowledging there have been major issues with the website. we'll have a live report from

washington on today's hearing and new concerns that the president may have potentially misled the public on one aspect of the law. >> yeah, plus tonight, we'll have a special report on obama care for viewers in the united states. that's at 6:00 eastern. now, also in washington, the ever-growing firestorm over u.s. spying is about to come to a head. >> right. it's not just in washington. it's around the world. this has been making big news abroad. the directors of national intelligence and the nsa will testify on capitol hill today about u.s. surveillance at home and around the world. >> meanwhile, president obama has ordered a review of intelligence gathering outside of the country where as hala says, this has been big news, trying to calm what has become an international diplomatic storm. here's his take. >> that's why i'm initiating now a review to make sure what they're able to do doesn't necessarily mean what they should be doing.

>> let's bring in elyse la by the at the state department. here's the question that not just in the united states but outside of the united states people have. what can you tell us about president obama possibly ordering the nsa to stop spy ong leaders of allied states and did he know this spying was going on when it was indeed happening? >> well, in terms of what he knew and when he knew it, none of us really know. the white house is saying that president obama knew this summer when an internal review that was started revealed that this was happening on about 35 world leaders. and at that time, the administration kind of intensified this review. they're saying the president didn't know the up until then. but officials are telling us, you know, when president obama took office, he was briefed on these programs and if he didn't know specifically which countries, he knew that generally that this program existed. now, wa is he going to do about

it? the white house says that the administration is taking this review not only about whether the u.s. can have the surveilance on world leaders but should they. does this really fall in line with the policy goals. and these are the questions that are going to be talked about in the next few weeks. >> the thing that's interesting here too, elyse, you talk about spain and france and particularly germany upset about their leaders perhaps being listened on but a no spying ingredient, a club if you like, already exists. u.s. has that no spy deal with britain, australia, new zealand and canada called the five poob is deal where it came up after world war ii. so you know, what's wrong with germany and san francisco saying can we join, please? >> certainly these are two of the u.s.' closest allies. there has been reluctance for the u.s. to kind of add to this. this was set up a very long time ago and whether germany and france could be added to this

unclear because they want to have maybe the eu be involved. those are 2 members. i think the u.s. wants to keep its the prerogatives on its surveilance activities but clearly, there are going to be some very intense discussions with the germans and french about the boundaries of intelligence and what it really means to be that close ally that you say you are. you can't do that on world leaders. that's the message that they're sending >> exactly. keeping a close eye on the friends. elie lab bot at the state department. >> the what about republican leaders? that's an embarrassment for the obama administration. they say they're calling for a review of the nation's spy programs. it's perhaps one of the only things that the white house and the gop leadership can agree on these days. >> have a listen now to house speaker john boehner. he was talking just moments ago. >> i don't think there's any question that there needs to be review. there ought to be review. and it ought to be thorough. we've got obligations to the american people to keep them

safe. we've got obligations to our allies around the world. but having said that, we've got to find the right balance here. and clearly, there's -- we're imbalanced as we stand here. >> and john boehner seeming to echo president obama there. interesting to note, this is coming out, all this condemnation and calls for reviews after it was revealed that foreign leaders were potentially spied on, not the millions of spanish or civilian enordinary citizens the gathering of their metadata. it's interesting that this was the impetus and not what was revealed before. >> a bit annoyed. but as you say, you point out, 60 million spanish phone calls listened into in one month. so a lot of people upset about that. now, the whale of criticism, the white house is hearing from all around the world, of course, is the reaction over the leaders and the nsa spying there. al goodman is in spain where

there has been a lot of blowback as we said, 60 million phone calls monitored by the nsa in one month. >> i'm al goodman in madrid. publicly, madrid doesn't have the proof u.s. espionage targeted spain but out of concern, it called in the u.s. ambassador to spain to explain what was going on. and spain's foreign minister warned if the spying is confirmed, it would rupture the climate of confidence between madrid and washington. spanish prosecutors announced they are opening a preliminary investigation into the spying allegations. >> well, as you know, the u.s. spying allegations stemmed from leaks made by former nsa contractor edward snowden. he describes himself as a whistleblower, but others say he's a traitor. >> christiane amanpour has spoken with the journalist who worked closely with edward snowden to expose these secrets and joins you now from london.

you had that interview with glenn greenwald. what struck you most about him, he is one determined man on a bit of a mission really. >> he continues to insist that despite the vociferous criticism that officials have leveled at the snowden leaks and at him and the press for publishing them, it is not all about terrorism. he keeps saying loorks, they want us to believe that everything that's being leaked is just about life and death terrorism. but it's not. there are a lot of other revelations, a lot of revelations about economic and commercial and industrial espionage. there are a lot of revelations obviously which started the firestorm of protests around the world. about spying and collecting metadata from ordinary citizens. that is what really drives glen green wald really, really crazy and let me play you just a little bit of what he told me on this regard. >> let's just request use common sense. every terrorist who's capable of tying their own shoes has long

known that the u.s. government and the uk government are trying to monitor their communications in every way they can. that isn't new. we didn't reveal anything to the terrorists they didn't already know. we revealed the spying system is largely devoted to the innocence people around the world. . >> so that is what he and snowden really want to get their message out. that is their message to the world. and when i asked him about, you know, what about terrorists and others so-called the bad guys, knowing how the u.s. figures out what they're saying and how they're meeting and what they're planning, you know, he says they're being very careful what they put out. he told me they have many, many, many thousands of pages of documents and that he estimated they'd published about 200 to 250 pages. but you know, michael, if there is some kind of review of all of this and if it's a meaningful review, it will certainly be

claimed as a victory by snowden and greenwalled. >> indeed. thanks so much. a fascinating interview. for our international viewers, christie and's show comes up about three hours or so from now. >> coming up, reportses show president obama may have misled the american people or said something wrong when he said this -- >> under the reform we're proposing, if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. if you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan. >> and then the numbers of terrorist attacks around the world are on the rise. how there was an 89% jump. fatalities since 2011. >> you're watching "around the world." we will be be right back. [ male announcer ] pepcid® presents: the burns family dinner. why would i take one pepcid® when i could take tums® throughout the day when my heartburn comes back?

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unisom sleeptabs help you fall asleep 33% faster and wake refreshed. unisom. a stressful day deserves a restful night. the white house facing more tough questions on obama care today. you're looking at live pictures there of the house hearing on the enrollment website problems, and there have been a few. >> there's new concern not about access to the site itself, but insurance policies. president obama has given repeated assurances about americans being able to keep current plans if they're happy with those plans under the affordable health care act and speeches going back as far as four years ago. listen. >> if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor under the reform proposals that we put forward. if you like your private health insurance plan, you can keep it. if you like the plan you have, you can keep it. if you like the doctor you have,

you can keep your doctor, too. we will keep promise to the american people. if you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor, period. if you like your health care plan, you'll be able to keep your health care plan period. if you like your doctor, you'll be able to keep your doctor. if you like your health care plan, you'll be able to keep your health care plan. if you've got health insurance you like your doctor, you like your plan, you can keep your doctor, you can keep your plan. >> well, it hasn't really worked out like that not exactly anyway. joe johns joining us from washington. but like a lot of things, some of those plans didn't fit in with the new rules under obama care. >> yeah, that's the bottom line, michael. this is about those people getting cancellation notices from their insurance companies. it's true. you heard it. the president aid it again and again. people can keep their insurance. what the house is saying today it's true that the vast majority of people who get insurance through their employers or

through the government can keep their insurance, but this issue be about americans getting insurance through private individual markets. and now have gotten notices that the company's canceling the policies for example because they don't comply with the affordable care act. marilyn tavernner who was testifying today today recited the administration position that these are people who got insurance in the private market mash maybe after the obama care of act passed or because the policy changed after the act was passed which means they were not grandfathered in and they have to get new insurance. sometimes it turns out to be more expensive. tavernner also pointed out some of the insuranceps companies are changing policies and doing it on their own volition, michael. >> and this is hala, joe. so how many people are we talking about here in terms of people who might have to -- whose insurance plan might be dropped and who might have to

make changes this he might not want to make? >> we've heard there could be right now as many as a couple million people who have gotten these kinds of notices, but the sum total of people who could get them could be anywhere we're told between 11 million and 15 million. so you're talking about a lot of people in the situation, hala. >> joe johns in washington, thanks very much. >> well, was it an attack or just an accident? that's the question that's being asked after a jeep crashes into ten men square in beijing. this is china. cnn's coverage of this story, you're watching "around the world." [ nurse ] i'm a hospice nurse. britta olsen is my patient. i spend long hours with her checking her heart rate, administering her medication, and just making her comfortable. one night britta told me about a tradition in denmark, "when a person dies," she said, "someone must open the window so the soul can depart."

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uighur. chinese officials acting as if that deadly jeep crash in the middle of tiananmen square was no accident. five people, you may remember, died. dozens were injured when the jeep burst into flames. this is, of course, in a very crowded tourist area. well, the government is now the censering information about the crash. and authorities say they are looking for several people, largely from the muslim minority uighur provinces where tensions have turned violent in the past. here's david mckenzie in beijing. >> new details have emerged that monday's dramatic events in downtown beijing could have been an orchestrated attack as authorities investigate the deadly jeep crash at tiananmen square, beijing hotel manager who did not wish to be named

tells us that local police alerted hotels city-wide asking for help in finding suspects. who appear to be from the ethnic uighur minority. the police listed vehicles and i.d. numbers and said the suspects may have stayed in the capital from october 1st. leading to speculation of an orchestrated political statement. if it was an attack, it would be both audacious and highly symbolic. at noon monday, a jeep plowed through tourists and burst into flames. amateur video of the incident was posted on youtube. crash site itself was quickly scrubbed clean and as pictures emerged on social media, authorities quickly censered them and blocked internet searches on the subject. cnn's own reporting has been blacked out in china. the largely muslim uighur minority is centered in xinjiang province in the far west. there's a history of tension

sometimes violent between uighurs and chinese. people have grown to expect unrest in that region but not in the very heart of the capital. thmt snept at tiananmen square infamous for the brutal crackdown on student demonstrators in 1989 will be deeply embarrassing for chinese leadership. david mckenzie, cnn, beijing. >> as david points out, every time we mention that story here on cnn, our signal in china goes to black. hala? >> interesting before cell phone cameras, we probably wouldn't have had a single frame of that video. in the midst of the firestorm over the nsa spying on world leaders, president obama hasn't escaped the world of hi-tech hacking. his twitter account was targeted. a pair of tweets sent by the preds's political campaign group organizing for action, redirected users to youtube videos supporting the regime of the syrian president, bashar al assad.

alison kosik joins us from new york. who's behind this? how did they break into the president's twitter account? >> all good questions. this was pretty bold. the group that has claimed responsibility is known as the syrian electronic army. what they told cnn in a statement is ofa, meaning president obama's organizing for action campaign, the links that were posted on twitter and facebook were hacked and redirecteded to a video showing the truth about the syria. now, the group claims that it also got access to a bunch of other e-mail accounts in addition to the my barack obama.com and donate barack obama.com websites. now, the two manipulated tweets, those where is actually retweeted hundreds of times on monday before web detectives could get the links directed back to their intended targets and the hackers broke in by somehow getting ahold of the president's campaign account credentials. hala? >> all right, alison kosik, thanks very much in new york. speaking of syria, the bad news

continues for that country. the world health organization now says that is polio is back, polio. they've confirmed the first outbreak of polio in syria since 1999. ten cases have been confirmed with many more feared in the future. michael? >> a bit hard to vaccinate when there's a war on. that's for sure. coming up here on "around the world," germany and france want a no spying agreement with the united states. u.s. does have one, as we mentioned earlier with a few other select countries. so will the u.s. set up a new spy policy with say, chancellor angela merkel? we'll discuss that next on "around the world." pepcid® presents: the burns family dinner. why would i take one pepcid® when i could take tums® throughout the day when my heartburn whycomes back?ke one pepcid® 'cause you only have to take one... [ male announcer ] don't be like the burns. just one pepcid® complete works fast and lasts.

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plus, you could save hundreds when you switch -- up to $423. call... today. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? welcome back, everybody, to "around the world." i'm hala gorani. >> and a special welcome of course, to our international viewers joining us on "around the world" all this week. i'm michael holmes. >> the directors of national intelligence and the nsa began testifying on capitol hill about an hour from now at 1:30 p.m. facing some questions about u.s. surveilance at home and around the world, as well. >> it's going to be interesting. that's for sure. revelations about the extent of u.s.s spy programs have we've been telling you, sparked a global firestorm. a lot of people a bit annoyed including u.s. allies.

john shindler is a former counter-terrorism officer, currently a professor at the u.s. naval war college. president obama of course, ordering review of intelligence gathering in other countries and on other countries. but should u.s. allies be surprised they're being spied on? >> first, great to be here. no, i don't think they should and i think certainly intelligence services in places like france and germany were at least well aware of what was going on. you've mentioned on the program the so-called five is agreement with the u.s., uk, canada, australia and new zealand, a nonspying alliance going back to world war ii. outside that, everyone does understand that espionage is a fact of life. >> uh-huh. this is hala gorani with michael holmes here. >> hi. >> is it possible that the president of the united states didn't know the that foreign leaders such as angela merkel, the chancellor of germany were

being spied on, that many so cell phone conversations were being listened to? >>, of course, it's possible. the president is a very busy guy who doesn't normally worry about intelligence collection details. that said, certainly a lot of staff at the national security council i think had to be aware. i think part of the challenge here is we're hearing part of the debate. reality is, there's a great deal of espionage in europe. only a small portion is conducted by the united states. the members of the europeanian union spend a lot more effort spying on each other than nsa does on any of them. >> who's the client? where -- it's one dimensional. this is a specific question regarding merkel and other foreign leaders. had who is this intelligence intended for if the commander in chief is kept in the dark about tapping the cell phones of foreign allies? >> well, certainly all intelligence goes to feed decision making in every country. your top military civilian

leadership up to and including your president, your prime minister, whatever. that doesn't mean your top leadership is always fully briefed on details. that's not something most of them have interest in. they're interested in facts, not how you get them. >> a close relationship it has to be said an particularly merkel. do you think there's an element here of providing some level of plausible deniability? don't tell him so he can say he didn't know? >> i think that's possible. i think the reality is to talk about the german example because it's so prevalent in the media right now, the handy gate thing, without getting into details of what may or may not have been done, germany is heavily dependent on the united states and britain for its intelligence particularly in counter-terrorism and counter security because it underinvested for so long. the reality is nsa information has save the quite a lot of german lives since the 9/11 attacks which were staged out of

hamburg, germany, a fact we tend to gloss over. top german officials admitted information from u.s. intelligence has disrupted several terrorist plots inside germany itself. this is a complicated picture. >> we're talking about millions of phone calls all in secret without the knowledge of those people in those countries on foreign soil. why is it -- why is it wronging to asking that question of whether or not this is legal or even right to do such a thing? >> well, i think legal is one question. spaunl is generally illegal when you're doing it. that's part of the rules of the game. that's why you're not supposed to get caught. but the reality, it is very complicated since so much data is also shared with european partner governments. this metadata collection is often shared with others. metadata collection, you hear figures about 60 million spanish calls a month. that's metadata, not intercepting of the phone calls

themselves. that's make this clear. nsa would have to have several million employees if this were true. it's not true. much of this data is shared with partners. there is much plausible deniability on all sides that european governments don't want to admit they're helping the americans. the intelligence business is by its nature secret. we're going to have a congressional review of all this. that's probably an excellent idea right now. but the idea of fully transparent intelligence goes against the very nature of the animal. >> john shindler, thanks very much. john was mentioninging this hearing that's going to take place on capitol hill, an open hearing which is unusual on these practices. >> there could be some fireworks there. john, thanks so much. now, if you're just joining us, president obama's signature and a little controversial health care law under fire at a congressional hearing right now. today, we actually heard an apology from the administrator whose agency oversaw the creation of the enrollment website.

that is the centers for medicare and medicaid services. have a listen. >> consumers are eager to purchase this coverage. and to the millions of americans who have attempted to use healthcare.gov to hop and enroll in health care coverage, i want to an poalize to you that the website has not worked, as well it should. we know how desperately you need affordable coverage. i want to assure you that healthcare.gov can and will be fixed and we are working around the clock to deliver the shopping experience that you deserve. we are seeing improvements each week. >> and coming up, we'll have a live report from washington on today's hearing, and new concerns that the president may have misled the public on one aspect of the law, being able to keep the plan that you have if you're happy with it, plus, tonight we have a special report on obama karat 6:00 eastern. stay with "around the world." we'll be right back. many cereals say they're good for your heart, but did you know there's a cereal that's recommended by doctors?

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it's going to take time to recover from the powerful atlantic storm that slammed europe from southern england all the way to denmark. at least 139 people were killed, most by falling trees. the lights are back on for most of the hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses that lost power because of the storm. and rail service and the airlines are slowly getting back to normal schedules. now, look at this. the storm with wind gusts of almost 100 miles an hour created enormous waves. and as you can see in this video roo from portugal, a once in a lifetime chance for a daredevil, daredevil is what they're calling had im. >> there were several did this. >> insane. >> it might have been a world record. they say that i think it's this wave. >> it's surfing that wave. >> 100 feet, 30 meters tall.

and these waves are so big you can't paddle on to them, you have to be towed in as you can see there by a jet ski. then you ride it. >> so he was towed in by a jet ski and road the 100 foot wave. >> which could be a world record. yeah. we'll keep an eye and let you know if it is a world record because as an aging surfer, that is amazing. >> as a not an aging surfer, i think that's amazing. it must be. >> i could watch those pictures all day. now, it has been a year, hard to believe this, since superstorm sandy ravaged new york and new jersey. much as changed as you can imagine. we've got some before and after i cans. not everything has changed. a lot of people are in limbo, fighting with insurance companies or navigating the serp pen teen web of government red tape. 356,000 structures most of them homes were heavily damaged or destroyed. some of this them lifted off foundations and move the down

the street. many people still living in fema temporary housing. it has been a year of great progress in many cases. look at that before and after. but you have to temper that by the humbling frustrations as you'll see in this video lookbalook back. >> here three miles compared to what we've been seeing in other places. it is about to crest over the sidewalk here in riverside park. it's definitely a much higher water level than we've seen before.

>> this massive tree right to the ground. >> well, atlantic city, new jersey was one of the areas hardest hit by sandy. and coming up, we'll hear from atlantic city mayor lorenzo langford who says his city is pulling through next hour on cnn usa. >> up next here on "around the world," terror attacks on the rise rise across the globe. 89% jump in fatalities since 2011. we'll look at that when we come back. ♪ ♪ ♪

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welcome back to "around the world."

in an italian courtroom, we heard about a desperate cry for the man on trial for causing the costa concordia cruise disaster. the ship hit the coastline and capsized last january. 32 people died. the ship's captain is on trial for manslaughter. a russian ballet star today pleaded not guilty to masterminding an acid attack on the bolshoi ballet's artistic director. the director was walking up to his moscow apartment in january when a macked assailant tossed sulfuric acid on his face leaving him severely burn and nearly blinded. he's had multiple surgeries since then. drone attacks a major part of the united states arsenal against terrorism but after several incidents of innocent people being killed, the government has dialed back their use. there were ten drone strikes in pakistan during the past five months, about one strike every 15 days. in the year before, they

happened every eight days. as you see in this video, the unmanned aircraft can be pretty precise. but what happens when innocent people get caught in the middle of an attack? cnn spoke to a girl who lost her grandmother in a drone attack over pakistan. >> when you heard that noise, what happened next? >> just everything became dark and i couldn't see my grandmother. i was looking around. i couldn't really make out anything. i didn't know what was going on and i could hear my grandma but couldn't see my grandma. >> several victims of drone attacks were invited to speak to members of congress today about their experiences surviving drone strikes. michael? >> very controversial issue in some parts of the world. one reason as we said the u.s. uses these drones is because it's a tool against terrorism. now, as cnn's pentagon correspondent chris lawrence shows us, acts of terror around the world are on the rise. >> it's not your imagination. terrorists are launching more

attacks like this deadly assault on a nairobi mall. and it's likely the world will see even more violence next year. cnn obtained exclusive access to an upcoming report from start, a group that tracks terrorism around the world. it found there were 69% more terrorist attacks in 2012 than a year before. there was an 89% jump in deaths. and with well over 5,000 attacks through june of this year, the future looks even deadlier. >> i expect we'll see that reflected in even more violences in 2013 and even higher numbers. >> dan benjamin was the terrorism coordinator at the state department. he says many of today's militant groups judge success by the number of people killed, including civilians. >> the old red lines, old barriers are all gone. >> six of the seven deadliest groups are affiliated with al

qaeda including afghanistan's taliban and nigeria's boko haran which is going after christian targets. >> the targeting of other religions or muslims of a different sect is driving casualty rate higher. >> it is much more like warfare and it's warfare using the tools of terrorism. >> but the violence is more concentrated than you might think. three countries, iraq, pakistan, and afghanistan, suffered more than half the attacks and the casualties. and that really points out the flipside of some of those numbers. the danger to civilians in the united states. western europe, even parts of eastern asia isn't nearly as high and may actually be declining. chris lawrence, cnn, washington. when we come back on "around the world," a terrific story. iran's national soccer team heading to the world cup and guess what, an american coach is going along with them.

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ern's national team is heading to the world cup in brazil next year. and guess what, their assistant coach is an american and he couldn't be happier. >> res acehia has the story of how dan gasper ended up living and coaching in a country many americans don't know or understand. >> june 18th. iran's national football team scores a 1-0 win against south korea. for only the fourth time, iran qualifies for the world cup. the win sparks frenzied

celebrations on the field in the streets of tehran, and among those celebrating. >> there was a lot of hugging. there was a lot of jumping >> american citizen dan gas par, the iranianian team's assistant coach. >> it was a battle of emotions and you know, after 90 minutes, that cork was released and just everything poured out. >> for gaspar, qualifying for the world cup was vindication of his decision nearly three years ago to coach the national team of the islamic republic of iran. a country then locked in a bitter feud with washington and one u.s. politician's often described as a rogue nation secretly building a nuclear bomb. >> at some point you have to go to your wife say honey, i'm going to iran. what did she say to that? >> she was shocked. she was concerned. as most of my friends and family members were. >> reporter: but the portuguese american wanted to work with

long-time friend and colleague head coach carlos queiroz. he wanted a crack at the cup and he wanted to get to know iran for himself. >> my personality is one of adventure and curiosity. i wanted to experience a culture in a part of the world that i've never been. >> when coach gaspar first got here in 2011, he admits he was a little nervous and wary. he didn't go out and socialize much. now that he knows iran a little bit, he says what we often hear from visitors to iran. what you see on tv doesn't exactly match reality. >> when you listen to the news and you read the news, sometimes during commercials i step away from my couch and i look out the balcony and it's not what i'm seeing and it's not what i'm reading or hearing >> gaspar says meeting former president ahmadinejad was just like meeting anyone else. iranians he says are generous and peace-loving people who love their football team and their country. one of his biggest thrills is

that iran's qualification for the world cup finals next year comes amid optimism that will tehran will improve relations with washington as moderate president hassan rouhani tries to settle nuclear dispute with the west. >> right now, more than ever, there seems to be a lot of hope and optimism and a sense of energy that thing will get better. >> for now, gaspar's focus remains the 2014 world cup in brazil, a final destination in a remarkable journey. >> if i listen to the experts and listened to my friends and family, i probably would have never been here in iraq. it's been part of my life for the last three years. and during these three years have been wonderful memories that will last a lifetime. >> reza sayah, cnn, tehran. >> that was an assistant coach but i don't know if many americans are aware, but bob bradley is an american, the football coach for the egyptian national team. >> exactly.

>> however, not great. bruising loss against guana, 6-1. >> australia qualified for the world cup, too. throwing it out there, that's all. >> france is my team. we'll see if they make it. >> absolutely they will. let's show you a couple stories ha caught our attention before we go. halloween is thursday in the united states. everyone getting ready for that, including an underwater diver. most of them areunder underwater dressed as a skeleton feeding the fish from plastic pumpkins in berlin. >> it's become very popular this halloween this i think abroad. chocolate lovers check this out. you won't find these sweets in in your halloween bags. chefs from around the world are competing in the world chocolate masters contest in paris. >> and let's go to the efforts while homeland. queensland, australia. scientists uncovering three new vertebrae spies. we've got plenty of those. a leaf tailed gecko. a golden skink and that one

there is called a boulder dwelling frog. >> what is a golden skink? >> we've got them as pets down there. >> what is it? is it a rodent? >> i don't know. >> we'll get to the bottom of that soon. that's going to do it for us on "around the world." i'm hala gorani. >> i'm mike holmes. cnn newsroom is next. hala will have the international desk an hour from now. don't miss that where she will punish you. punish you. thanks for watching. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >> right now the obama administration is under fire on several fronts. we're waiting for today's white house briefing. line of coverage coming up this hour. the administration facing tough questions regarding the president's promise about keeping your health care plan. also right now, top administration intelligence officials, they're getting ready to get grilled this hour. the head of the nsa and the president's top intelligence chief are both standing by to testify. we'll have live